A new fantasy epic is in the making, and it’s going to be big. The project is titled Wars of the Drakons, an upcoming movie not based on a novel or existing IPs but an original story written by newcomer Carla Romero. Barrie M. Osborne, best known for his Oscar-winning work in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, isn’t just developing the movie as a one-off, but as a potential franchise starter. He will produce Wars of the Drakons – or fully titled as Wars of the Drakons: The Seer’s Prophecy – with Alliance Cinema’s Jeanette B. Milio and Jim Milio, as well as Romero. The Drakons in question refer to the mythical dragon-like beasts with supernatural power.
Wars of the Drakons: Plot, Cast, and What We Know So Far
According to Deadline, the project has been in development for over six months, citing it as a “large-scale fantasy adventure” that blends a mix of “immersive world-building” and “emotionally driven storytelling”, designed for global audiences. The story centers on legendary warrior and Drakon master Kale D’Sar, whose unwavering commitment to a ruthless king is tested after a seer’s prophecy reveals the king’s daughter, Princess Kahrie, would be the one to unite the divided kingdoms of Aerion. Things get complicated when the king wants to get rid of her, driving Kale to save Princess Kahrie and putting himself in jeopardy.
Wars of the Drakons will feature elements of war, betrayal, magic, and star-crossed romance. The movie is also described as a passion project for Romero, whose prior filmography was a “special thanks” credit for the 12-episode animated television miniseries titled Young Dario in 2022-2023.
RELATED: The Hunt for Gollum Might Kick Off a Whole New Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Barrie M. Osborne’s Movie Career: From Kojak to The Lord of the Rings
The movie would mark 82-year-old Osborne’s first producing job in over a decade since the 2014 Spanish-language biopic Gloria, which chronicled the rise and downfall of the controversial “Mexican Madonna” singer Gloria Trevi. The biopic went on to garner 14 Ariel Awards nominations, the Mexican equivalent to the Oscars, and brought home five of them, notably Best Actress and Best Actor for Sofia Espinosa and Marco Pérez.
Since then, he spent his next few years serving as an executive producer for Pete’s Dragon, The Meg, Disney’s live-action Mulan, and Francis Ford Coppola’s notoriously self-financed big-budget curio Megalopolis. Osborne’s illustrious career in the film industry stretches back to the mid-70s, when he first worked as a unit manager for TV’s Kojak. He only moved into a producing capacity in 1981, beginning as an associate producer on films like The Big Chill and Fandango.
It wasn’t until the year 1994 that he finally got to produce movies, including the Ed Harris and Madeleine Stowe-starred neo-noir thriller China Moon, and John Woo’s 1997 high-concept summer action blockbuster Face/Off headlined by John Travolta and Nicolas Cage.
Then came Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy between 2001 and 2003, marking Osborne’s most ambitious producing gig ever handled. Apart from winning the coveted Oscars, The Lord of the Rings movies proved to be highly lucrative, raking in an impressive $2.964 billion worldwide on a combined $281 million budget. Jeanette B. Milio and Jim Milio, both co-CEOs of Alliance Cinema, previously made films, from Men Seeking Women (which features Will Ferrell’s earlier performance) to Freeway II: Confessions of a Trickbaby, and most notably, My Big Fat Greek Wedding in 2002.
No casting details or release dates are announced yet for Wars of the Drakons. But given the magnitude of such a project, which Osborne believes will appeal to a “four-quadrant audience”, it would potentially attract both up-and-coming and established on-screen talents, similar to the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
Of course, this news comes at the same time that Warner Bros. is preparing to expand on the LOTR franchise with The Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum, which arrives in December 2027. Except this time Andy Serkis directs in place of Peter Jackson. Serkis will also reprise his role as Gollum.
That means that Osborne’s new Wars of the Drakons franchise will compete directly with it.
